Sol Invictus: The Fall of Man
by Anime Borat
Summary: The apocalypse breaks into Ryoo Gakuen and forces the girls into the horrors previously un-thought off. Now they must work together to survive and face an even greater foe. Image used with permission from *xZDisturbedZx of Deviantart.


**Sol Invictus: The Fall of Man**

A/N: Hi guys, Anime Borat here. It's quite a while since I've written my other fics. Finally I can get to work. This time it's yet another crossover. It's **Highschool of The Dead** with **Lucky Star**. Yes, **Lucky Star**. The slice-of-life anime about four quirky girls is being mixed with one about zombie invasions, boobs, and guns by none other than me! Mwahahahaha! No, seriously, I am making this. Only it be won't anything like a typical crossover. In fact it would be grittier and edgier, something suggesting more than just killing zombies, more so than my other crossover **For What It's Worth**, AD-HOTD. I've also wrote two non-crossover HOTD fics,_ A Long Time Coming_ and _The Vision of a Single Man_. There are at least seven other zombie-based Lucky Star crossovers currently here in FFN: Four from _Left 4 Dead_, one from _Resident Evil_, another from _Killing Floor_, a British zombie game I believe, and a third from _Dead Space_.

I was mainly inspired by _Tastychainsaws'_** Falling** **Stars**, a crossover of _Lucky Star_ and _Fallout 3_. I first spotted it in TV Tropes(don't read the fic's troper page if you don't like spoilers) and then decided to read it. The fic appealed to me on so many different levels, especially about how the girls survive the Capitol Wasteland and still have their quirky sense of humor as well as its plot, going against remnants of the Prewar US government called the Enclave.

I also wanted to explore the possibility of how the respective casts will react with one another. Some would be funny, others would be serious, and maybe little OOC thrown like right in the prologue.. Possibly mixed are inspirations from some of Sam Peckinpah's works, the anime **Now and Then, Here and There**, _Inglorious Basterds_, _Dishonored_, _Metro 2033_, _Unforgiven_, and _Fallout 3_, _Far Cry 2 _and_ 3,_ _Medal of Honor_, especially the two first games and _Frontline_. Hope you guys, enjoy. Please R&R. Advice and criticisms are appreciated.

Disclaimer: Lucky Star is the property of Kagami Yoshimizu and Kyoto Animation. Highschool of The Dead is the property of the Saito brothers and Madhouse Ltd. No copyright infringement intended.

**Prologue: New Year**

The night was lit like fire as crowds of people converge on Takanomiya Shrine. Lanterns shining brightly in multiple colors hung from lines strung between the posts lining the path leading to the shrine, the torii gate. Their reasons for coming to the shrine were diverse as they were. For many it was for some it was to pray for hope in the coming new year. For others it was to pray for hope in the coming new year. For others it's a time for healing. All their prayers were preceded by the ringing of the _suzu_, the bell found in shinto shrines, which is believed to gain the attention of the shrine god. Many people went to the shrine bundled in winter clothing though some braved the cold air by putting on traditional kimonos.

It certainly wasn't a problem for the whole Hiiragi family, helping in their various duties. With a family that consisted of a father, a mother and four daughters; the composition of the shrine staff would naturally consist of this: priest, shrine maiden, shrine maiden, shrine maiden, shrine maiden, and shrine maiden. The patriarch, Tadao Hiiragi, performed his functions as priest.

Unlike other religions where a priest acted as preacher, moral guardian, and, sometimes, a community leader, the Shinto priest performed the role of mediator between the gods, the _kami_, and their followers in the mortal plane through offerings, evocation of the _kami,_ and mediation of the deity's blessing to the parishioners. As such he was to preside on ceremonies at the shrine on behalf and at the requests of his worshippers.

The New Year was also a time for the daughters to help in the ceremony, as a way for the family to be together. Tadao's wife Miki and his eldest daughter Inori assist him in the various functions alongside him including the selling of charms. And the job of ushering the parishioners fell on the twins Kagami and Tsukasa.

"I feel so sleepy..." Tsukasa moaned, wailing on their lot of having to keep order among the worshippers.

"Yeah, me too," Kagami agreed in a slightly tired voice. "We have to help as soon as we got home from the anime convention. Why did they have to hold one at this time of the year?" She yawned quietly. Already the fatigue was coming to take their toll on them. Kagami was now regretting accepting Konata's invitation to the convention.

"Kagami, Tsukasa," a carefree voice called. "Happy New Year." The elder twin turned her head at the source of the voice. Coming to them was a girl of diminutive stature, almost could be mistaken for a grade-schooler, with long, blue hair topped off by an ahoge, her cat-like mouth set in a perpetual sunny smile. Konata Izumi appeared, waving her hand.

"Happy New Year too, Kona-chan," Tsukasa returned the greeting.

"You seem to have awfully lot of energy for someone for someone who was even since morning," Kagami observed. "Plus, it's so cold right now that and i didn't expect you to show up."

"That's true," Konata replied. "But January the first is the first day of the New Year so I have to come charge up for the remaining three hundred and sixty-four days."

"Oh, that's great," the ponytailed twin commented.

"No, that's what my dad," she chirped.

On cue, her father Sojiro Izumi appeared behind her. "Hello," he greeted.

For an odd reason in an instant, a chill went down Kagami's spine. _Suddenly, this is disturbing,_ she thought.

"Your shrine maiden outfits made you so cute," she said cheerily.

"Oh yeah," her father agreed, causing Kagami shudder and break out cold sweat.

Being lead to a que by the twins, they took there place in one of the lines which moved slowly towards the shrine, one foot at a time. It wasn't exactly a problem since one most observe solemnity in a place of worship, which is never meant to rushed. When their turn came up they approached the altar together, threw some coins into the offering box. Then they rang the suzu, take a step back, bow twice, then clap twice, and finally offer short prayers for good fortune in the New Year.

After that, Sojiro went off to buy some charms while Konata rejoined the twins.

"We're done praying," she said.

"Okay. Good job," Kagami replied.

"Did you guys do any praying?"

"Oh yeah..." Tsukasa turned to her older sister. "You were doing some intense praying, onee-chan."

Kagami sweat-dropped and answered quickly with a blush, "There you go blabbing again! It wasn't that intense." Her sister was quite the absentminded one in their circle of friends, speaking out things that she shouldn't say.

"What'cha prayin' for then?"

Kagami's blush only got redder. "E-eh, I was just praying that I could be in the same class as you and Miyuki-chan."

"Praying for what?" another voice called out, very sweet, ladylike and familiar.

The trio turned to a tall woman with long pink hair and glasses.

"Miyuki-chan!" Konata exclaimed. "I didn't expect you to be here."

"Wow, you're here," Tsukasa said quietly. "Are you here for the New Year?"

"Yes, I am," the tall girl said cheerfully. "My mother said she had urgent business to attend right now so she won't be around the house."

"That's great," Konata chimed. "Me and Kagami were talking about what she's praying."

"Konata!" Kagami snapped.

"Kagami was that we would be classmates with you next year," Tsukasa unhelpfully added.

"Tsukasa..." Kagami said in a low, stern voice.

Tsukasa gave slightly embarrassed smile. "Uh... sorry, sis."

Konata kept her mischievous smile as Kagami sighed with frustration. The former looked around the crowds of people. She turned to Kagami. "Kagami, it seems that have a high turn-out this year."

Kagami then face Konata. "Well, this is your first time to visit our family shrine but yeah, we do. We're a small shrine and we don't get a so big a crowd as tonight."

"Maybe because it's New Year," Miyuki observed.

"Yeah, I think so," Kagami agreed. The crowd seemed to consist of whole families or groups of friends. There were small knots of foreigners among them with cameras, ranging from European-looking types to handsome people with dark skin, all wanting to see a piece of Japanese culture during a holiday such as New Year. There were also people from other parts of Asia including one that spoke with a Russian accent, reading from a guide book to his friends.

"Well, must be a lucky year for all of you," Konata cheered.

"Thanks, Kona-chan." Tsukasa smiled warmly.

"I wonder how many people are here for the shrine maidens," Konata chirped playfully.

Kagami suddenly shuddered and her eyes darkened at her friend's suggestive observation. _Oh, come on!_ she thought. _There aren't many of those pervs here. Maybe..._

A wolf whistle immediately got their ears perked. The four girls turned their attention to the source of the noise, three boys.

"Hiya, ladies!" the one in the middle greeted them. "Happy New Year." It was followed by chuckles from his companions.

Tsukasa was immediately frightened and Konata casually observed, "They look like your generic anime teen goon-extras."

Kagami could not agree more. They were disreputable-looking fellows, probably in their late teens. They were dressed in shabby dark jackets and jeans, yet had a certain smartness. For sure it hid their certain lack of brawny muscle. This made them more loathsome in appearance than threatening. Their outburst turned a few heads among the crowd.

"Hey, how about we ditch this boring shrine and hit the kaoroke bar, huh?" he said again. "It's a better way to spend the New Year, especially in your _miko_ outfits."

Kagami felt offended at the way she and her sister were being talked at by these men, and at a Shinto shrine no less. Tsukasa huddled with Konata as Kagami stepped forward, wanting to remind these ill-mannered rowdies that this was a shrine, not a girly bar.

With Kagami approaching them they whooped loudly, thinking they already got a girl, everyone looking at the drama being played in front of them. It took all the composure that she could muster not snap at them and control her voice as she addressed them. "Excuse me, sir. Today is the New Year. It would be most appreciated if you please observe proper behavior here." Their faces were not red or florid. She could smell their breath and clearly they were not drunk, although it left something to be desired about their breath.

Her voice was meek and calm, which was rather befitting of how most people view a shrine maiden, which briefly perplexed Konata for OOCness.

"This doesn't look good," Miyuki observed with a shudder, fearing things might get out of hand.

"What, miko-chan, don't ya get bored of shrine duty?" the second boy retorted, causing more guffaws. This time the whole crowd gradually slowed and then stopped, turning to the exchange between one of the shrine staff and the unruly visitors. "The fuckin' night's still young! Let's mount up."

"We hit the jackpot," the first boy said, pointing at Tsukasa and Miyuki. "She's got a sister and Little Miss Pink-haired-ass-and-tits over there." More whooping and howling followed, causing Tsukasa and Miyuki to step behind Konata.

Kagami's face turned outraged with shock at the use of such tasteless language at her, her sister and her friend. _What the hell are you calling her, you jackass?_ She said much more firmly, "Excuse me but you're all acting unruly. If you're not here for the New Year, please leave."

"Hey, this is a free country," the third boy said, "you can't make-" He was cut off a raised hand from the first boy, indicating that he keep quiet, letting his leader speak.

"We're here and we're gonna leave," he replied rudely. "But not without some cooch. How 'bout you come with us? And bring your friends too, baby."

"No thanks." Her tone was terse. She then snapped quietly, "If you want some company go find some mannequins to bring along with you. If you want to attend the New Year, find another shrine and behave, and change your habits while you're at it."

The two other boys made mocking hoots. Konata wondered if they were mocking Kagami for asserting herself or their buddy for being called out by a girl. Meanwhile, Tadao was making his way through the gathering crowd, fearing for the safety of one of his youngest daughters.

The boy's face broke into a smile, a grimace with a perplexed glare. Kagami then realized that he had hit his ego quite hard. Half of her smirk inside for that minor victory; the other half worried about the outcome.

He turned to his friends. "Well, well, well, we've got a hard bargain." Facing her gain, he scowled angrily. "Tell you what, shrine wench, how about a minor donation, courtesy of me and the boys so you could live off from this shitty shrine?"

He dug into the pocket of his jacket and fished out some crumpled yen bills.

And threw them at Kagami's face. Tsukasa gasped instantly.

It was all the mockery that she could take. All the anger she contained through the whole exchange fired up. Quickly, she grabbed the guy by his jacket and struck him hard in the face with her clenched fist, provoking collective gasps and cries from everybody. The man recoiled and crashed on his back.

Kagami breathed hard and slow, clenching and unclenching her trembling hands. No way was she gonna let a lowlife treat her like some bar girl.

"Hey, you okay, boss?" one of his buddies asked with concern as he helped him up. Shock briefly beheld him as he stumbled back on his feet, feeling his legs like jelly quite not believing the shrine maiden could throw quite a punch. He clutched his jaw, the bone ached really bad. He looked at her and his eyes squinted dangerously.

After her outrage cooled down, a quick, sober reflection sent a column of ice running down her back when she suddenly realized what she had unleashed. Kagami instinctively took a few steps back. _Oh God..._ she thought gravely as she continued to distance herself from him.

"You little bitch..." he spat out as he straightened out. Then growled, "You should know better than to fuck me up!"

He raised his hands and was about to lunge. Kagami yelped in fear.

Only his lackeys grabbed and held his arms that kept him from carrying out his threat. While they were keeping their boss at bay, Kagami felt a hand snatch and pull her out of the way, and she found herself back in the company of her friends. Her mother Miki arrived just in time, pulling both her and Tsukasa in a protective embrace, relieved that no harm came to her twin daughters.

Everyone watched the somewhat comical, yet serious, struggle of the lead bully being kept in check physically by his lackeys, altogether cursing and screaming. Sojiro brought Konata close to him as he watched the commotion. Miyuki, without a guardian, was taken in behind the two adults.

Tadao finally emerged from the crowd, just in time for the lead teen to stand down, breathing heavily as he ceased his struggle, his friends finally let him loose, eased at last that some sense had finally reigned on their boss. He approached them calmly, warily, his robe rustling a bit as he moved. Everything was all silent except for a few murmurs, an occasional shuffling foot from the onlookers, and slightly rustling cold air.

He paused a bit to look at the three teens who accosted Kagami. He felt no small amount of anger at the detestable conduct of these boys towards his daughter and the obnoxious behavior they displayed at the shrine. Yet he did not show it, his upbringing and schooling in Shinto cultivated in him a graceful patience and a keen mind to approach a problem reasonably. There was no need to go out in a screaming match with those ruffians. He simply had to tell them what he had to say and keep a cool head.

And hope for the best.

He then walked towards them slowly without urgency in the strained silence. His head leveled so he can face them, his face set in an inscrutable mask except for steely gaze of his eyes. The cold air rustled around the fringes of his priestly robe, causing it to flutter slightly. All of this gave an appearance of dignity. Tension thickened the whole scene as they watched in what was the equivalent of a town elder confronting a gathering of drunken malcontents.

The lead boy stared back at him back at him with hard eyes.

"You're the priest?" he finally said, his voice in a low tone of disdain.

"Yes, I am," he replied calmly. The moment was just warming up.

"One of your little shrine maidens," the teen spat back slowly, menacingly, "physically assaulted me."

"I'm very sorry for that to happen to you," Tadao replied sincerely. "It won't happen again-"

"Fuck you, man!" he whispered harshly. "I want that little bitch to apologize to me."

"I'm her father. You talk to me." Tadao did not like the way this boy called her daughter nor the infuriating lack of respect the displayed the whole time. Still he kept his cool. He will not let them bait him.

Then that grimace adorned his face once again. "Well, well, well, the main man's here. Guess you're here to try stand up for your daughter, huh?"

"If I recall correctly, you came here to create a disturbance at this shrine."

He chuckled slightly. "Look's like it's my turn to apologize," he said facetiously, trying to belittle Tadao in his own turf. "Sorry about that... _old man_," he said the last two words like it had a sour aftertaste. "Me and my boys are just having a good time, try something a little different so we came here."

"Like hooliganism? At a crowded shrine? Don't you have any decency for the sanctity of this please, especially now that it's New Year? And you also accosted my daughters and their friends with your boorishness. What do you have to say to that?"

He then eyed him. "It's not like you're gonna call this shrine god of yours to shove a lightning bolt up my ass."

"Maybe I won't have to. You already made a spectacle of yourselves right here tonight." Tadao turned his head to the crowd, who silently watched the whole exchange. The boy followed suit and realized what the priest meant.

They turned back to each other again. "Son of a bitch..." He glared angrily at Tadao.

"That's right. Your word against my word, the word of my family and the word of over a hundred witnesses here tonight. Can you say that I'm bluffing? Please leave or I'll call the police. You're no longer welcome here."

The boy growled slowly, feeling humiliated by the priest, and wanting to bring out his switch blade into his throat when one of his cronies whispered to him, "He's right, boss. Let's get the hell out of here."

Breathing slowly for a while as he considered his choice, he decided that the night was lost, there's nothing to turn the tide now. "Fuck you, Gandhi. You win this round. But you better watch your back." With a few words to his posse and a wave of his hand the trio finally left. Their exit was marked with silence.

Tadao watched them walk away. He heard them mutter _money-grubbing_ with a obscenity or two, their parting shot at him before finally disappearing into the street. He closed his eyes and sighed, relieved that he defused the situation without everything turning for the worse.

He could hear some murmuring from the crowd. He knew that these boys came here to make a scene, to disrupt the New Year's celebration for their own coarse amusement. Fortunately, they didn't get far, now Tadao Hiiragi has to avert the damage they've caused, the spell of cynicism cast by the gang of irreverent youths into the minds of the worshippers and visitors.

In this day and age most of Shinto's traditions have been reduced to hollow shells of what they used to be, making them more and more irrelevant over time, although nothing that merits this sort of disrespect. Traditions, to him, were, and still are, the glue that held societies together and provided balance in an erratic world. Ethics derived from centuries of traditions became the cornerstone of morality and enlightenment, something that went beyond merely observing rituals properly or ardent devotion to the gods. Their legacy was the roots they provide for stability in human life, an anchor and compass for one to sail across life itself, the molding of character of a person or a society as a whole. Shinto is an example of such way, a culmination of all traditions of many bygone times.

He knew that things were more complicated than that but he believed in them, believed in their positive attributes. Someday he will tell their daughters about it.

He turned to address the crowd, "Excuse me, everyone, may I have your attention please." His voice was soft and tranquil; then it resonated with authority and dignity. "I hope that this problem does not affect all of you tonight. We are all here gathered for the New Year, to celebrate it, to pray for a better year, or to turn over a new chapter in our lives. They're all equally important to you, and for those reasons you came here to the shrine. However, not everyone agrees with that and they have a right to do so. But that does not give anyone the right to create this sort of disturbance. That is no longer expressing a dislike for something, that's merely a display of loutish behavior, wholly ignorant of any decency to all that is held sacred. Why would someone do that is beyond me, beyond any of us. And I'm glad it didn't get any worse than it is."

The silence was heavy and very sobering. Everyone who witnessed the whole scenario from the the boys accosting Kagami to Tadao calmly telling them off were perplexed by it. To all the tourists this was something that was shockingly tasteless and irreverent, especially Japan of all places. The worshippers, however, were absolutely incensed by their mocking disrespect of religious conduct, a collective sense of disgust permeating them. Some of the senior citizens among them apprehensively glanced at the shrine, fearing the wrath of its god for such a travesty. Even with the incident settled peacefully the whole thing left an aftertaste that was like a miasmic fog enveloping everyone with its fouling influence.

He felt it too. Nothing is more potent in ruining the atmosphere of a holiday brutally than coarse behavior, which, he thought, may be deliberate on the gang's part. He then "This is not a funeral, this is a celebration of the New Year, a new beginning. So let us try to to keep to its spirit tonight."

The silence was still there, only this they turned their eyes to him. Somehow the atmosphere lightened up rather quietly.

Then one person clapped, followed by another clap, then more followed as the crowd turned erupted in applause. It was totally unexpected, he only said what he felt was needed to keep the worshipers from going gaga over the incident. Well, his little speech filled them with optimism, New Year is supposed to be filled with hope after all. The tourists were clapping too, only they clapped louder, he noted. Perhaps, in their lack of knowledge of Japanese, what he said meant something more to them.

He then turned to his daughters. Huddled together with their mother he saw Tsukasa crying while Kagami looked sullen, her eyes looking blankly. _My God_, he said to himself, _they're badly shaken, especially Tsukasa_.

Kagami thought her life was about to end when that goon tried to jump her in rage. It wasn't just the rage that got to her but also that sense of helplessness that caused her to to let out that short yelp of fear. Somehow she didn't feel like the big elder twin sister she always thought herself as. In the process of standing up to them, he raged and her mind froze as he tried to give her what would probably a bad beating. She felt angry at those jerks, how they treated her, and at the same time herself for freezing up on the spot. A mixture of rage and helplessness was stewing in her.

"Kagami." He father's soft voice brought her out of that stupor. She looked up to see his face, so full of concern and compassion. "Are you alright?"

"I-I'm fine, dad," she replied haltingly.

"It's okay," he said reassuringly. "You're a good girl."

Kagami nodded, trying to feel better for herself but couldn't.

Tadao patted her head comfortably. "I think those boys shook you very badly. I need you and Tsukasa to go home."

"Yes..." she replied.

"Don't worry. We can handle it here. You both need to rest."

"Thanks, dad."

Tadao smiled softly and it brightened Kagami up a bit. She took Tsukasa by arms, who now stopped crying, and led her home. She was still letting out tears but it mostly subsided by now. That was good. Tsukasa seemed also to be holding to her arm tightly. Not that she blamed her. Tsukasa, for all her klutziness, was a good soul and her sister. She loved her dearly as she loved everyone else in her family and her friends.

"Onee-chan, please stay with me tonight," Tsukasa whimpered.

"I will," Kagami said softly.

"Please don't leave me," she begged again, letting out a fresh stream of tears. "I'm scared."

"Don't worry, I won't," she reassured her. "I'll be with you, okay?"

Tsukasa nodded. They both walked silently the rest of the way as everything else resumed pace at the shrine.

Konata looked longingly at the twins as they returned to their house. For once she couldn't think of anything. No witty comebacks, no appropriate pop-culture reference for the given situation, even if she was generally-regarded as the otaku encyclopedia at school, nothing.

For Konata, to say that these two were having a rough night was an understatement. Tsukasa would probably have nightmares about the whole thing and Kagami must have felt humiliated by those... jerks! That's the only word she could give to those boys. How that guy threw those bills like Kagami was a common hooker made Konata want to go Street Fighter on his ass. Jesus, what the hell's their problem anyway? Or at least that guy's problem, she corrected herself, seeing that his two lackeys were probably wimps. Seeing Kagami bring that fist to his face was a crowning moment of awesome for her.

She was also worried about the boys coming back to get their vengeance on them. He was frightened by the look of that guy's face when their dad confronted him. He looked ready strangle him. His behavior made him less like your average delinquent. More like a football hooligan/Euro-street thug. But even street thugs don't come to a church with the express purpose of ruining a mass on Christmas Eve.

Her father patted her shoulder. "Konata," he said. "I think we should leave now."

She looked at Soujiro's worried face. _Dad's worried too_, she noted. She was about to say yes when she looked at Miyuki, standing alone in the crowd, like a swan among ducks and geese. Miyuki, the moe goddess according to Konata, had that worried look just like Dad's. She also recalled how those jerks referred to her as a walking set of butt and boobs with pink hair, like she was Dutch wife than a person. How dare they! Seeing her with no one to watch her prompted Konata to ask her dad, "Um, dad, how about Miyuki?"

"Hmmm?" Soujiro took a look at Miyuki standing there by her lonesome. "Your friend. She look's lonely. I think we should keep her company." Miyuki was pleasing to the eyes for Soujiro's lolicon tendencies. From what he saw during the sports fest, she fulfilled his fetish for girls with glasses and from what little he heard from Konata, she's probably the sweetest of them all. Makes it worth to be her protector for a while.

Konata smiled. "Great idea, dad."

They both approached Miyuki, who turned to see them. "Oh, Konata. You haven't left."

"Yeah," she replied. "Seeing you there all alone, we decided to stick around."

"Oh thank you, Kona-chan," she thanked gratefully. "And thank you, Mr. Izumi. I assume you're her father."

"Yes, that's right," he replied. "A good girl like you should stay under the watchful eyes of good wholesome men such as myself."

Konata was horrified, since she got her H-game penchant from her dad. _Dad!_ She thought, _Don't scare her like that, it's bad enough for one night already._

She smiled cheerily. "Thank you both for you're concern. I appreciate it. But my mother has already taxi coming to pick me up."

"Well wait for the taxi then," Konata replied.

"That's right," Soujiro added with a thumbs-up. They walked out of the shrine and waited for the taxi to arrive. Despite the nipping cold, Konata felt glad to help out a friend.

* * *

The coming of January the 1st meant the passing of the old and entry of all that is new. Therefore its coming was always something to look forward to, something to celebrate. That sentiment was not always shared by everyone in an otherwise merry holiday.

Takashi Komuro sat in his bed during those rare times Fujimi Academy released its students from their dormitories. Holidays and semester breaks were a good time for the students to go home to their families. Takashi realized it sucked. He looked at the alarm clock on the nightstand. It registered 12:30. He sighed heavily and dropped his back on the mattress. Lady Luck, it seemed, was screwing him over for the New Year.

He never took his academics seriously and did not mind skipping a class or two, maybe three at time. It came biting him back in the ass when the results were posted. He's now repeating a year and his dad just chewed him out for that for three hours after he came walking alone in the park. Which was the reason why he wasn't at the shrine with his parents.

But that wasn't the worst part.

Rei had to repeat repeat a year just he like does. Which is puzzling since Rei was a straight-A student, just like the self-proclaimed genius and other childhood friend Saya Takagi. He shrugged and sighed again. No use thinking about how that happened anyway. That only began from there.

She refused to talk to him after seeing the results. He tried to ask and got the cold shoulder. He did not pursue the matter as she walked off dejectedly, taking it quite hard. A few days later she started seeing his best friend Hisashi Igou...

"Damn," he muttered to himself. He looked at his cellphone, next to the clock on the night stand. For some dumb reason he was expecting Rei to call. Maybe, he was still hoping that she ask him to go to a shrine with her, so they can go out like they used to and hopefully, make new their pinky swear promise from when they were kids. He never had the guts to tell her how felt about her, just like his lack of motivation in his studies. He felt very down when he overheard them, watching them from behind the glass window as she poured out her feelings about him to his best friend and felt like she was ignored by him. Damn, what a prick of the needle he felt at the heart.

Ever since then, he felt like drifting. His performance in school was fair-to-middling, nothing too bad or even an inch above what it was and he still skipped classes. He had no drive to try even patch up with her, who found a better lover in Hisashi than he was. They've been together lately, no surprise there. He just had to not look at them to keep that needle from pushing deeper in that heart of his.

Going out with Saya, his other childhood friend, was out of the question. He knew some about her folks, that big fancy house, and why no sensible teenage boy would date that pink-headed harridan lest he gets a pulped, bloody nose.

One things for sure, it'll be more of the same.

Putting his hands behind his back and looking up at the ceiling, he said to it, "Same shit, different day."

* * *

Not everyone went to the shrines on New Year's Eve or party at home with family and friends. Some people had to report to work on such day, be it a power station, a hospital, or a taxi cab. These kind of jobs were things that modern society could not do without. In a sense, the people working in those job sectors were the prime movers of society, equal to all the people at the top who made great decisions that affect all, only without the recognition that was due to their high-up bosses.

There were some souls who stayed alone in the New Year, often without the company of their loved ones or their friends at home. Often, they sat alone doing whatever it was that they do to float their boat or kill some time. The latter was more frequent in evidence as someone who might watch reruns or movies on TV without any more thought than to make the time fly. Some people also work at their homes too during New Year or any other holiday.

Sometimes these people moved society too.

At a house set in an affluent residential district a woman was already at work on the phone with a client, working out their current venture. The phone she held was a cordless satellite phone of a type not normally available to even many rich businessmen.

"Uh-huh..." She listened. "You'll get your merchandise. We can discuss the details at any place of your choice. Fair price? Good. I'll give you these account numbers at Zurich..." She gave her numbers over the phone, repeating them for emphasis. "Half now, half when you get your goods. Oh, I can't right now, the situation down there's too hot right now, you might want to lay low for a while. I'll book a flight to Bangkok within a week. Uh-huh, thank you very much, sir, it's always good to have satisfied customers such as yourself. _As-salamu alaykum_."

She hung up the phone for a while and looked at her watch. It would ten minutes before her next client calls her. While not very hectic, things were quite busy for the holidays. Things were much easier when her husband was still around, she mused. Oh her husband... the man of her life... no one could ever replace. She just wished that her daughter got to know him better. It would complicated though, considering what both she and her man did to bring food on the table.

The sat phone rang again. She pressed TALK and brought the phone up again. "Hello, sir. Happy New Year... How was the party?... Great! I didn't know someone like you as conservative as yourself would attend to it, since it's not your idea of a party, usually you call it _social function_... Okay, I'm sorry. Let's put away the pleasantries, shall we? Okay. So, what's your order?"

The knuckles whitened around the sat phone as she listened closely as her client detailed his requests.

"Hmm, I can get some of the items quite easily. However, the others are a little more complicated. No, it's not just the question of more money, sir. I'm gonna need a little more lubricant to get you the more 'special' ones. It's not gonna be that easy like it used to back in the 90's... Yeah, I know, you were prepared for Y2K more than ten years ago... It never happened and you've got trouble trying to maintain all your stockpiles and had to sell most of it off to stave off the near-public shitstorm back in '04. It's sad thing for your cause... Forgive me for saying that. Just please remember that I'm neither enemy nor friend. I'm simply a business partner, so business is strictly business. So... you want me to talk to your subordinate?... Your best man, huh? Okay, we'll straighten it out on... the week after next week. I have my hands full in first two months of this year. I've got to deal with the Americans, the Saudis, and whatnot. You know how it is in my line of work. I'll be happy to help you in full on March. It's a pleasure doing business with you... General."

She hung up and placed the phone the nightstand. There was a chirping sound. She extracted from a pocket her cellphone. On the LCD screen was her daughter's number and on it was a text message.

I WANT TO GO HOME. I'M AT TAKANOMIYA SHRINE. CAN YOU PICK ME UP?

She smiled sweetly. Her daughter, her other center of her universe wants mommy to pick her up. It felt so heartfelt that she was giddy as she stood up and tripped on her rug. It was only after falling that she quickly pulled herself back. She also felt something wasn't right when her daughter asked her to be picked up. She put it on "call" and asked her daughter about what's going on. In a sheepish meek voice she explained what happened. Her eyes narrowed in quiet rage as her little girl explained the incident. Her knuckles whitened again as she gripped the cellphone.

"Okay, honey. Don't worry," she spoke in a calm voice. "I'll get a taxi to pick you up there. Send my thanks to Kagami. Okay, I'll see you soon." She hung up. She felt the some quiet rage building up on her on those cretins and their little sport at shrine. As much as she wanted to have them ripped to shred, Miyuki at the moment needed her mother. She then called a cab company and asked for transport for her daughter. She had no need to go after those lowlifes for the moment.

After all there's always a time for everything.

* * *

A/N: Phew, that was a smasher. The most difficult part was the doing the whole shrine piece. The scenario I cooked up was largely fictional and for sure never happened in reality to say the least. I mean who does a hooligan act at a sacred place in a middle of a holiday? I'm sure nothing of that sort happens in where you live. And the end scene of it was as best as I tried to picture it, although I feel it's lacking or sloppy. Please tell me. I also tried to capture Takashi's character as much as possible. It's not easy when you're trying out new characters.


End file.
